Hey y'all,
I haven't read the whole thread to catch up (sorry), but I wanted to check in here. We have been struggling with weight gain issues--or rather lack of weight gain-- and breastfeeding has been tough. She started off fine, but she has a bit of a lazy suck and my milk supply hasn't been enough. I have been nursing her at least every two hours and giving her pumped milk in an SNS to supplement. Then I pump for 7-10 min. on each breast at least 4xday. That's good because I am able to use what I pump in the SNS along with breastmilk from my friend who's baby is 5 days younger than Zoe (thanks, Kim). Honestly it is exhausting but she is starting to grow. We finally gained back to her birth weight early last week

She is such a beautiful, sweet natured baby. I love her to bits, and we are having so much fun together

Her newest cuteness is that she is trying her best to laugh...it comes out more like a hiccup or squeak and startles her It's too cute.

Hope everyone else is well, and look forward to being able to catch up.

Should we start a DDC thread over there? Although, I do wonder if I should "switch", since DS ended up being a Feb. baby...

nak
Sure, it's the start of the new month, sounds like a good time to switch over to that forum. I started this thread here because we hadn't all had our babies yet and I noticed the ddc threads over in the lwab forum get buried fast if there isn't a lot of participation -- oh by the way, I think our last March mama (Mama2b) just had her babe!!!

oh, and about switching to Feb, I had a Feb babe too but I know all of you all and I don't know the Feb mamas! Can I stay? :

Valerie, thanks for explaining block nursing. That seems exactly like what we should be trying for similar symptoms. And here I thought it was all the chocolate I was eating when I gave up coffee --- I tried giving Johnny the Hylands colic tablets in a dropper of water last night, but it didn't seem to help much and made his poop VERY green and watery (usually it's only greenish once in a while). Does block nursing decrease your mild supply at all?

I am new to CDing for this baby too, and it's going well enough that I'm just beginning to think about switching to CD at night too (all the disposables leak anyway), but my concern is that John be lying in a wet diaper all night and get diaper rash. Also, if the diaper is too bulky, doesn't that contribute to reflux because their butts are higher than their heads? There is so much available that I'm not sure where to start. I have Bummis and prefolds so maybe I can make do with them? Any advice? The Diaper Forum overwhelms me!

Jamie, who had been "weaned" for about 3 months, asked a few weeks ago for a nursie. DH didn't think it was a good idea, but I thought maybe it would be another way to give him back some of what he is now missing b/c of baby brother. So I let him, but unlike my other DC, Jamie never had a good latch and I used to get sore nipples all the time no matter what I did (the other two seemed to know what to do). Plus now he uses his teeth and leaves marks and my nipples turn white. So I figured it WASN'T a good idea after all, but now Jamie won't let go of the idea and asks for a "nursie" several times a day. I try to cuddle with him at these times or fix him a glass of cow's milk or hot chocolate or read him a book, but I'm wondering how long it will be before he lets go of the idea of BF. DH is mad at me for letting him try it, and I really wish I hadn't opened that can of worms either, but I had really thought I would tandem nurse for a little while, and I would have if it hadn't been so painful. Am a horrible mother?

Forgot to mention that I had really bad nightmares after the day I'd been taking the echinacea (dreamed that John was dead and there were two DHs in the room together). Don't know if that was a coincidence or not. The only other thing that's ever caused nightmares for me is MSG.

jenny - we CD at night w/ BSWW and prefolds or fitteds w/ no leaks. I check his diaper everytime we nurse and change him when he's wet. I just keep a few prefolds by the bed and switch them out in my bed, while trying to keep my eyes closed . On your toddler picking up nursing again, I've heard that once a child weans, they pretty quickly forget how to nurse - their latch will never really be the same again, so it's hard to start nursing a toddler who has weaned. it doesn't sound like a fun situation. I would probably try to end it asap rather than dragging it out. And instead of the colic tablets, have you tried gripe water? It's easy to give b/c you just syringe it in their mouths, and I haven't noticed any change in Eli's poop when he's had it.

Re: LWAB forum, I agree to move there at Tuesday. And also I think everyone who's been a member of this DDC is welcome, regardless of when your babe was born!

Swaddlebees - try selling them here on the TP. That's where I bought all my new dipes for this baby, and things went very fast. I've never used BGs, but I use a handful of wonderoos one-size pocket dipes and really like them. The same dipes fit Eli and RObin (she still wears dipes at night when i'm home alone). Other than those and another handful of Fuzzi Bunz, I'm a BSWW devotee. I have some other covers, but don't really like any other covers. Eli has alredy outgrown the newborn covers I got, though. I just got 2 b/c they were a good price.

Thanks to everyone for your good wishes, again. My MW was supposed to come today with another MW to re-stitch. But when we spoke just after lunch, she was waiting to hear from the other MW - and never called to say she had. So another cancelled appt. She is a flake, and it makes me nuts. If she keeps flaking, I still have the appt with the CNM for next week.

The thing that is making me nuts (okay, there are several related to this tear saga - i go between angry and upset) - is that I'm still restricted in my activity. Still have to do the "hold a quarter between you rknees" crap - and I really want to get active again and start working out. NONE of my clothes fit except those with elastic waists, which are pretty few. And b/c of financial circumstances, I can't go out and buy a new wardrobe of bigger sizes. I need to fit back into my clothes, and I'm pretty close. I can get some of them on, they just don't look good. I know if I could get out even walking it would make a big difference. I'm too busy and hungry to make radical diet changes at the moment...

YoBecca- I would be SO mad at that MW of yours!!! She does not sound professional at all, and it's scary to think that she is supposed to be the one mothers go to for information during their pregnancies, and the one *in charge* during a delivery! And she can't even keep an appt or return a phone call? Grrr...

Nighttime diapering: I used Fuzzi Bunz last time and my super-soaker formula-fed foster DD soaked through them every time, even with a midnight diaper change. They worked great with my son who nursed all night, I guess he didn't pee as much. This time we have the convenience of a diaper service, so we've been using plain ol' prefolds with Proraps covers and no leaks! We do a bikini twist with no fasteners during the daytime. At night I fold the pf in half width-wise, then in half again so I have four (+) layers of absorbency. DD doesn't poop at night anymore, and she holds her pee most of the night and floods first thing in the morning, so our little system has been working great- through the entire night. I can't say enough about the Proraps covers- they are really awesome. We haven't had any poop blow-outs (knock on wood) because of the leg gussets, and the bikini twist makes it's own gussets within the diaper. Bummi's SWW are really great too. We have a few of those, and of course lots of wool!

So, I guess it is time to move to the LWAB forum. *Sigh* My baby is nine weeks today, after all. : My due date was 3/9/07 but I always told people I was due "at the end of February." DD came 2/26/07, so I am not technically a March mama... We should title the thread something like "Feb/March '07 babes" so everyone feels included, lol.

Also, if the diaper is too bulky, doesn't that contribute to reflux because their butts are higher than their heads?

Another reason why I put him to sleep him on his tummy :

Quote:

Originally Posted by JennyClaire

DH is mad at me for letting him try it, and I really wish I hadn't opened that can of worms either, but I had really thought I would tandem nurse for a little while, and I would have if it hadn't been so painful. Am a horrible mother?

No, I think it was the right thing for you to do! OK, here is maybe a crazy idea to help him wean back off -- maybe try expressing a bit into a cup and letting Jamie drink that -- that way the baby is still sharing with him, but it won't hurt you! And then gradually he'll lose interest? I don't know if it would work but it was just a thought I had.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yo Becca

Thanks to everyone for your good wishes, again. My MW was supposed to come today with another MW to re-stitch. But when we spoke just after lunch, she was waiting to hear from the other MW - and never called to say she had. So another cancelled appt. She is a flake, and it makes me nuts. If she keeps flaking, I still have the appt with the CNM for next week.

OH MY GOSH!! That makes me so mad that she would do that!!!

Sigh, OK, I guess we can move to LWAB since it's May 1... anyone else sad that we are leaving our great little DDC? I've been here since the day the ddc opened (actually I'm the one who pm'd the mod to start the ddc! ) and I will miss coming here. Am I sappy or what?

I can't start it right this second, but I can come back later today and start it if no one else has

Sigh, OK, I guess we can move to LWAB since it's May 1... anyone else sad that we are leaving our great little DDC? I've been here since the day the ddc opened (actually I'm the one who pm'd the mod to start the ddc! ) and I will miss coming here. Am I sappy or what?

I can't start it right this second, but I can come back later today and start it if no one else has

Well I'm sappy too...I've learned so much and gained so much inspiration from our DDC mamas...and I still think of all of you whenever I wear my birth beads bracelet. I hope we can all keep in touch on LWAB!

We celebrated Sophia Anya's "monthiversary" yesterday - yeah! We've been doing really well. She's been sleeping more than our other two did as newborns. I feel very blessed that everything is going so well, and my husband is on an extended leave (here in Canada he can get 75% of his pay during that time). This last year has been very difficult and my pregnancy was very challenging so this is such a wonderful change!

I am also happily tandem nursing. It's really not bad at all! I don't enjoy nursing my two-year old as much as a newborn but it's much more pleasant than nursing during my pregnancy.

To the PP who needs restitching, I'd say, if I may, get it done now even if it seems scary and painful (but maybe find somebody more reliable than your midwife if possible - I skimmed through some of the posts, not sure if that is feasible for you). I had an episiotomy (that I refused but got anyway: ) with my firstborn and never understood until this third birth (seven years later!) that some of the pain and discomfort I have had for years is due to a poorly done, badly stitched, never perfectly healed episiotomy. My only solution now seems to be surgery which I am not sure is worth it at this point.

I know of a few other moms who have had trouble like that with a tear or episiotomy.